A backwards step for Worcester Parkway
I awoke this morning to disappointing news that the train I catch most days from Worcestershire Parkway to Cheltenham (the 7:58 to Cardiff) to get to the office was to be cancelled for a 13 week period (https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c4gz7y51jnno).
I had been travelling on this train with my bike for the past 12 months and found it excellent thanks to a spacious bike area, low ticket price and perfect timetable for my schedule. I travel with a full sized regular bike (i.e. not a folding one) plus 2 loaded panniers with my laptop, book and change of clothes and even with such a setup my bike rolls straight into the designated area. There’s more than enough room for many bikes and another can snuggly fit in the gap on the unused door side.Combining the train with cycling was both faster and cheaper than driving from Worcester to Cheltenham and provided much needed fresh air and exercise plus a little boost for the environment. A rare Win-Win-Win in my books.
So what are the options now? The only alternative that gets me to work on time is the 7:25 from Shrub Hill, 30 minutes earlier isn’t the end of the world but this also increases the ticket price by a whopping 40% from £10.30 to £14.80. This is also the London service so I expect it to be busier and likely features the dreaded bike cupboard instead of an open space. I suspect I may soon find myself in the market for a folding bike.